


Birds of a Feather

by Kangalia



Series: Alatos Wingfics [2]
Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: Alato!AU, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, F/M, Female Sawada Tsunayoshi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Wingfic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-27
Updated: 2018-05-19
Packaged: 2019-04-28 18:54:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14455632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kangalia/pseuds/Kangalia
Summary: When the Alatos - people who were born with giant birds wings attached to their shoulder blades - came into being rather suddenly in Italy, they were hated, scorned and treated as lower life forms. When were birds ever better than humans, after all? Most people seemed to forget that the Alatos were human as well, even if it was staring them all in the face. The Alatos themselves hoped and prayed that, over time, their kind would come be accepted - just like the other little quirks that attached themselves to that human race over time.They weren’t.In fact, it only got worse.And little Tsunahime knew that perfectly.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! To everyone who has been waiting for this, I’m very sorry for the huge amount of time this took to get out, but I do hope you enjoy it. To everyone who’s just found me for the first time, welcome and I hope you enjoy it too! 
> 
> I believe this will become one of my greatest and probably longest fics I have ever dreamt up, so I’m really excited to see where this goes myself. I do have a plan, however, so do not fret! I know what I’m doing (I think). Chao!
> 
> DISCLAIMER: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. I do, however, own the concept of Alatos and any OCs and I add (if I add any at all, which I probably won’t, but I’m just putting it out there in case).
> 
> Un-beta’d. If you see any grammatical errors, please let me know.

Tsunahime Sawada sighed, a sound too tired for a girl of twelve, before chucking a loose stone and watching it bounce a few times on the opposite roof of the building her legs were currently swinging off of. Golden feathers ruffled behind her, the unnaturally strong muscles on her shoulder blades twitching in recognition of the potential threat Tsunahime's height was to her. However, this didn't catch her attention enough to draw her eyes away from the wonderful sight of the sky darkening from blues and greys to oranges and pinks as the sun set. As she gazed unseeingly at the colour-washed sky, the brunette exhaled audibly, relishing in the rare opportunity to just sit in the open air and let the breeze comfortably waft through her hair and feathers. The setting sun on her body was an amazing feeling as well and never failed to lift her spirits.

Displaced air and flapping wings rudely brought the pre-teen back into the present and Tsunahime smiled, the familiar footsteps like music to her ears. Lazily tilting her head backwards, somehow managing not to fall, she grinned at the upside-down form of her first and best friend. His black hair was cropped short, as usual, however Tsunahime could easily notice how it had grown down the back of his neck in the last few months and his bangs were falling into his eyes. While his crisp black jacket was unruffled, the fact that his tie was missing and his formal dress shirt had a small, almost unnoticeable stain on the left side clearly advertised his unprepared state. His black slacks and shoes were on point, however and his cool gray eyes softened slightly, just like they always did when he laid eyes on her. Tsunahime only smiled wider at the sight. He wasn't too ruffled, then. Good.

“Kyoya-kun.” The male nodded his head at her greeting and wordlessly declined her offer to sit next to her via her tapping hand and instead stood behind her, just off to the left. Despite his apparent distance, he was still close enough to offer his unwavering support and she appreciated the gesture. “Little bird. Are you ready?” Tsunahime giggled quietly, the use of her nickname warming her heart. It had been a while since she'd heard Kyoya call her that. “I think so. Were just waiting on the others.” Kyoya clicked his tongue at his accomplices’ tardiness (he'd never be caught dead thinking of them as friends).  
“ _Baka_ herbivores. They should be here by now.”  
“Let them have their last moments here, Kyoya. We won't be back here for a long while and it's been their home for eight years: you and me, even longer. They deserve time to say goodbye to any friends and acquaintances, just like we’ve done.” Kyoya frowned, glancing sharply at the younger female and shifting slightly on his feet. “Following that logic, shouldn’t you have taken the longest?” Tsunahime’s eyes shadowed and her smile became melancholic and Kyoya winced. He’d seen that expression only twice before and immediately metaphorically kicked himself for putting it on her face. “Maybe, Kyoya, maybe. That would have been the case a few years ago, but now… I’ve already broken my ties to this place. You should know that _Kyo-chan_.” The brunette grinned cheekily back at him, the darkness lifting from her eyes and he smirked, the both of them recalling the good times long gone. Times where they could have fun without the niggling doubts in the backs of their minds and could bicker back and forth all day without a care in the world. Times where they wouldn’t need to look over their shoulders whenever they went outside, or dodge the stares and whispers and harsh comments that hurt more than a knife to the gut would. As if sensing their shared thoughts, Tsunahime inhaled deeply, exhaling afterwards and letting her form slump slightly with it. “Yeah… those were the good times. You were much more childish back then, y’know? We all were...” The brunette’s nostalgic smile and the sight of the weariness returning to her eyes put a stop to any witty retort the cloud may have bitten back with and he instead huffed, crossing his arms as black feathered wings, slightly larger than Tsunahime’s own, ruffled with irritation.

It did not take long for their third companion to show up and he was just a _bit_ louder than the first. Wings swooped down, their owner staggering in the roof with a wince. Turquoise eyes - young and old and weary all at once - scanned the rooftops, the figure relaxing at the sight of his two friends, before he gulped, trotting up to them. “Tsunahime-sama, I'm sorry about my lateness. It won't happen again-.”  
“Shush, Hayato-kun. It's okay. Relax, jeez you look like I'm going to eat you.” Light, airy laughter echoed out and the silver-haired teen chuckled, red tainting his cheeks as he plopped ungracefully on the ground to the right of the brunette, red and white feathers scattering. Tsunahime frowned at the sight, staring intensely at the blushing teens face. “What?” Tsunahime’s frown only deepened.  
“You haven’t been caring for yourself again, Hayato-kun. Look, your feathers are falling out prematurely.” Slender, pale fingers pointed to the scattering of feathers behind the silveret and he huffed in annoyance, reaching behind him and brushing them off the rooftop, watching them swirl in the air and disappear from sight as his emotions bubbled out of control. “Yeah, well, there hasn’t been much time to care for anything recently, has there?!” The hothead nature of his reared its head, lashing out at the closest to him in a way to vent his stress and anger that had built up once again. Tsunahime’s eyes flashed as she reared back sharply and Hayato started to panic, believing he’d upset the one person he’d promised to never hurt. “Crap! Uh… S-sorry, Tsunahime-sama. I didn’t mean-”  
“Hayato-kun. Stop. Listen to me.” A slender but powerful hand grasped the flailing man’s wrist, its grip firm but gentle and comforting all at once and Hayato found himself relaxing. Flickering his eyes up to meet hers, he expected to see her hurt expression, only to meet smouldering, determined eyes of pure gold. His breath left him suddenly in a whoosh and he froze, unable to tear his eyes away. “Hayato-kun. You promised me you’d look after yourself. Don’t break that promise on me. Not in this delicate situation. I can’t lose my right-hand. I can’t lose my friend. Not now, not ever. Okay, Hayato-kun?” And suddenly, he could breathe again and he sucked in a deep pail of air as gold eyes dulled back to honey-brown. The momentarily forgotten ravenet, who was still lounging in the background, snorted at the dazed and awed look on the hothead’s face, a shit-eating smirk painted on his features. In response, the firecracker within Hayato rose up to the challenge with a fierce scowl, the boy whipping around and feathers puffing up like an angry cat. “What was that for, you _bastardo!_ ”  
“Guys.” Silence reigned and both boys shrank slightly, their competitive outburst curbed for the time being. “Lets… lets just calm down and spend our last moment here in peace, okay?” The shake in her voice gave away her nervous disposition and all three settled, watching the sun as it dropped further below the horizon. A sudden exclamation from Tsunahime made both boys jump and watch her in confusion as she rummaged around in her pockets, pulling out a very familiar bubble-gum pink camera she’d gotten just before they’d all met. The boys had never seen her without it. “Lets commemorate this day, huh, guys?” They smiled at the child-like glee on the brunette’s face - an expression that had been lost on all three of them over the years. Lifting the contraption to her eye, she smiled, watching as the sun crept closer to the horizon inch by inch through the lens.

“Well, here’s to a new day!”

Snap.


	2. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tsunahime suffers through her first two months at school with only her struggling mother to depend on. However, when a group of upperclassmen get a hold of her and deliver a particularly nasty beating, she's saved by a boy she does not know, but could somehow feel, was a friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING!!! The start of this chapter is a bit of an info dump, so I do apologise for that. Still working on that whole ‘show not tell’ concept *cheeky face*. However, it does pick up in the end with the first major canon divergence (minus the ‘winged people’ and ‘fem!Tsuna’ things), so please do hold out! Chao!
> 
> DISCLAIMER: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. I do, however, own the concept of Alatos and any OCs I add (if I add any at all, which I probably won’t, but I’m just putting it out there in case).
> 
> WARNINGS: Possible trigger warnings for bullying and graphic violence against a young child at the end of this chapter. If this bothers you, please skip the last part. I will mark the start and end of it with a bold *. Thank you. 
> 
> Un-beta’d. If you see any grammatical errors, please let me know.

_ Seven Years Prior…  _

Tsunahime Sawada, a young brunette child of six with hair as untameable as her spirit and eyes as expressive as her heart, scurried down the streets of Namimori, the town where she had lived all her life. It was a quaint little place, with only a few dozen or so homes, a school and small hospital, but it was home for the young girl. Unfortunately, it being a home did not change the fact that she hated the place.

Being what she was, the main Namimori populace hated her. Whispers and cruels barbs followed her wherever she went. Bullies were free to terrorise the girl without any repercussions and very few people would even talk to her, let alone spend long amount of time around her. Unless they were forced to, that is and even then their words were clipped and harsh and their eyes cold and distant. Living with such a lonely existence was hard, but bearable. And the only person to make it so was also the one person in her life that loved her - her mother, Nana Sawada. She was very much a housewife sort of lady and didn’t work in favour of raising her only little girl and the young child had inherited much of her looks from her. The honey-brown, doe-like eyes, milk-chocolate tresses and petite figure all came from Nana and the only thing that linked the child to her father was the wild, spikiness of her hair, almost foreign features (such as high cheekbones and an angled jaw) and her bubbly personality. Of course, she wouldn’t know that, due to the man’s constant absence in her life. She’d seen him a grand total of twice, although she was a baby for both and could therefore only remember his defining features, such as a sturdy, strong build and spiky golden hair. The one thing she could not forget about the man, much to her annoyance, was his name; Iemitsu Sawada. Her mother frequently fawned over the man and sometimes Tsunahime couldn’t help but loathe him for that - for taking her mother’s attention off of her for almost hours at a time when he wasn’t even there to help support them. The brunette knew it was selfish of her, but she just couldn’t help it. Her mother was the singular most important person in the world to Tsunahime and the woman was the only one she could turn to for positive attention, such as smiles and hugs and warm, comforting fingers sifting through her feathers after a long, stressful day at school. 

Tsunahime winced, having stepped on a hard shard of glass that had pierced her shoes (she’d known that they had been of the worst quality, however there had been nothing that could have been done. The shops didn’t like her, you see. They were the same as every other person in this town -  _ cruel) _ . She shook her foot a few times, halting her walk back to her house and also letting her reminiscent thoughts drift away into the depths of her mind. Instead, another avenue for thought popped up and the young child sniffled dejectedly, wiping a tattered, stained-white sleeve over her eyes as she continued on. School had been even worse than usual, with more bullies tripping her up, even more cruel witch cackles from the girls and taunting from the boys. She’d had a test again and a lack of revision material that she  _ should _ have been given at the start of the year, like all the other children, almost guaranteed that she’d fail. The teachers were, yet again, no help and so she’d been left to puzzle and suffer on her own, eventually earning a measly nine out of forty,  _ again _ . Of course, it hadn’t been that way from the beginning, but the good times didn’t last long - a week, to be exact. Then things went downhill fast.

Surprisingly, she could still remember her first day. It had been a wondrous six hours, full of other children, like her, crowding around her and begging to be her friend, if only to get a glimpse of her large wings. Tsunahime had been awed at the idea of having  _ friends _ (she was too young to realise they were merely there because she was  _ new _ and  _ different _ and  _ cool _ and not because they had any intentions of becoming close to her) and had enjoyed her day immensely. She’d never had any friends before (Alatos never did) and the idea of having people actually  _ wanting _ to talk to her and play with her, instead of being forced to for sake of politeness, was  _ amazing _ for the young girl. 

Of course, that was when the small, buzzing sensation in the back of her mind that had followed her through her life (she hadn’t remembered a time when she  _ didn’t _ have that strange feeling in the back of her head) had brought itself to attention, determined to ruin her day. She herself had noticed that the teachers weren’t quite right when they talked to or about her - as if their actions seemed forced, in some way. She recognised the same look in their eyes as those adults on the street and they always seemed so much more detached and distant when they talked to her compared to anyone else in the school. They seemed to wish to not interact with her and the kind smiles and words never really reached their eyes when they looked at her, unlike how they lit up in the presence of all the other children. Tsunahime, however, had been determined to let nothing upset her day and ignored the signs that were blaring obvious and continued like normal, despite the small voice in the back of her head calling to her, whispering  _ fake-wrong-LIAR- _ **_FAKE-WRONG!!!_ ** incessantly.

She could still remember how excited she’d been that day and how her wings - which were a lovely cream colour, with golden and brown feathers peppered all over - had been practically vibrating with euphoria. She’d ridden the wind currents all the way home, minding her mother’s warning of not flying too low or too near to the paths in fear of knocking someone over, and had rambled on excitedly to the motherly woman for the rest of that evening. Eventually, she’d fallen asleep much later than usual, her excitement keeping her up, but it had not been without a huge smile on her face. Nana had wept with relief and joy that night; her foolish optimism having gotten the better of her. To her, it seemed like the scorn of being an Alato - the same hatred her mother had faced and later been murdered because of - was finally starting to fade from the world. She’d hoped that society may finally be starting to accept the Alatos for who they were, so Tsunahime might have a better life than even she did (being the daughter  _ and _ mother of Alatos makes you a social outcast, it seemed. Nana never minded, but her daughter’s physical and mental health was constantly on her mind). Of course, neither female should have gotten their hopes up that quickly. 

Tsunahime frowned, the buzzing in the back of her head growing so loud that it drowned out the noises of the outside world and her own roiling thoughts. Without warning, the buzzing in her head ascended into a crescendo of pure white noise that had the girl abruptly halting, her head tilting backwards in response and almost completely out of her own conscious control. Fortunately and consequently, her face was narrowly missed by something that had looked like a grey blur as it had flown by her face and proceeded to knock a trash can over on the other side of the street, if the familiar loud clang was anything to go by. Glancing at the offending bin, Tsunahime paled as she noticed the huge inward dent in the side and the large, tennis ball-sized, grey rock that had been lobbed at her head sitting innocently next to it. If that had hit, it probably would have killed her. Ducking her head and shrinking into herself, wings snapping tightly against her back in an instinctual defensive gesture, the brunette looked to find her would-be killer, only to see a fuming middle-aged man about to pick up another rock that was keeping a small gazebo from blowing away. To her, it looked like something from the Italian restaurant that had strangely opened up in the middle of the winter; an odd time to be debuting a restaurant. Not to mention, the name of the place kept setting off alarm bells inside her head which she guessed was in response to the oppressive feeling she kept experiencing whenever she got too close; almost as if she was being suffocated and crushed at the same time.

Seeing the man about to throw the other rock at her, Tsunahime inhaled sharply while tensing. She only hesitated a split second more before she was off, zipping through the streets as fast as her legs could carry her and dodging cold stares and harsh insults as she went. It reminded her too much of what had happened in her second week of school and she shivered at the memory, pushing her burning legs to go faster in an effort to make it home as soon as she could. It didn’t help that there was rain forecasted and she wouldn't be able to outrun anyone if her wings were clogged with water. She’d be at the mercy of the merciless Namimori citizens and she just knew that, with her being so obviously grounded and defenseless in the rain, any encounter with any of them wouldn’t end well. Just like her school career. She shook her head, trying to get rid of the memories, but they flew back like bees attracted to honey. She couldn’t help but remember and as she continued on home, at a much slower pace as she entered an area with very little people that could potentially hurt her, she found herself drowned in her thoughts, the emotions she’d been bottling up forcing their way out through her imagination.

Her second week at school went nowhere near as well as the first. That week had seen a drastic change in the school and it’s students and it slowly put an end to Tsunahime’s budding confidence. It was as if a switch had been flipped over the weekend and the whole student body went from loving the girl, to ignoring her or being outright cruel. Tsunahime had walked into school with a light heart, head high and wings fluttering excitedly and left with a heavy heart, her head bowed and her wings drooping sadly by her sides. Her feathers had even seemed to have become duller. Nana noticed the change immediately, but could do nothing about it. The days continued, her little girl coming home with bruises and scratches that she weakly tried to cover up and all her mother could do was patch her up, be a shoulder to cry on and watch as her heart broke along with the little light in her life. That had been a month ago.

Tsunahime was still slaving her way through the hell that was her life, but she was determined to make something out of it, no matter what happened. 

The brunette jolted, a sound like a firecracker going off echoing in her mind and she stopped dead. Blinking a few times to get rid of the fog in her mind, the girl stared uncomprehendingly at the very solid, very real red brick wall in front of her face. Frowning, she took a step back, peering to the left and into a house’s front garden. A very familiar front garden. Tsunahime smiled, swiftly sidestepping around the wall to unhook the latch to the front gate. Swinging it open, Tsunahime was happy to see that she was finally tall enough to reach the lock on her own instead of relying on her mother to hear her from outside. Skipping to the house, previous thoughts momentarily forgotten, the child pushed the front door open and calling out a greeting to her mother. Loud clangs and the running of water echoed from a room to the left, and Tsunahime was able to deduce that her mother was in the kitchen, probably cooking dinner. “Welcome back, Tsu-chan! How was school?” Nana peeped her head around the divide between the kitchen and entryway, scanning her daughter for injuries. Finding none, her smile grew and she turned back around to mind the dinner, checking to make sure it hadn’t burned in her small moment of distraction. 

Tsunahime’s mood momentarily dampened at the question, an increasingly familiar frown maring her face as she answered. “Same as always, kaa-san.” Hearing a downcast hum from her mother as confirmation that she’d heard her, Tsunahime finished placing her shoes off top one side and stepped up from the entryway, making her way into the kitchen along with the sounds of clothed feet padding against wood. “What’s for dinner, kaa-san?” Nana glanced up from her work, smiling at her young daughter who grinned back with inquisitive eyes.  
“I was thinking we could have kake udon! What do you think, Tsu-chan?” The little girl nodded as her eyes twinkled, hopping on her feet slightly before dashing up the stairs to get changed out of her school uniform. “Thanks kaa-san! You’re the best!” Nana chuckled, going back to chopping the green onion up and adding them to a broth she’d already prepared. However, as she listened carefully to the sounds of rapid thumps ascending the stairs before making their way directly above her and then stopping, the woman couldn’t help but frown. Her next swing, mirroring her feelings, accidentally cut some green onion diagonally and the mother stared at it uncomprehendingly for several minutes, distantly registering the thumping sounds from upstairs growing louder. Her memories swarmed, the day when she had lost her home, her family and her happiness in one fell swoop coming into her mind. Tears glistened in her eyes as she connected the situations her mother had been in to her daughter’s own life. All because of some stupid wings. For some reason the young mother could not comprehend, the world seemed to be determined to condemn people like her daughter simply for being born different. Nana had hoped and prayed that people would just get over themselves and accept the Alatos for what they were - simply winged humans. However, it had not yet happened and she was quickly losing the will to hope that it ever would. Through these turbulent feelings Nana would admit that in one of her darkest moments, she had wished that her daughter had not been born an Alato and had instead simply been a normal,  _ wingless _ little girl, but that idea was quickly squashed.

Glancing out the window, Nana pictured the day that wish had faded from her mind. She watched as the ghost of her past sat in the grass, arms out above her and a large, proud smile on her face as her baby girl floated and hovered uncertainty around the garden as a tiny two year old tot, her happiness shining through every pore of her being. She could still remember the several, arduous months of blood, sweat and tears her baby had shed before that day - she didn’t have anyone Alato to learn from and so she taught _ herself _ to fly! Nana had never been prouder of her baby girl than that moment. It was amazing what Tsunahime could achieve if given some  _ god damn praise and encouragement _ but everyone else seemed to believe her being born part bird gave them the right to torture a small, innocent child. Yes, Nana meant to use the word torture, for it was an accurate description of her daughter’s plight, no matter how harsh and drastic the word sounded when spoken aloud. The situation was hell on earth for her little girl and Nana detested it. Detested the world they lived in. Detested it all. Apart from her daughter. Never her daughter.

A wistful sigh escaped the woman’s lips as she went back to the dinner, managing to save the fish she had prepared on the side from the fire before it was completely charcoal. She winced, having forgotten about it and hoping that it was still edible. Shrugging, she placed the grilled fish on two side plates, pushing them to one side so she could concentrate on the broth and her own memories. She remembered the tales her mother had told her of how courageous Nana’s great grandfather had been - being the first generation of Alato was even worse than the modern times, it seemed, as he'd had to evade overt execution for his entire life. He’d been running, fighting and surviving for thirty years before he met her great grandmother; the daughter of a kind old man who’d let her great grandfather and the group of Alatos he’d been travelling with at the time, stay with him on his lands for a while (apparently, there had been thirteen of them). At the time, it had sounded like a cheesy romance novel, however, Nana had come to appreciate the little slices of happiness in her life and so had promptly told Tsunahime the exact same story when she grew old enough to understand. It had become a frequent bedtime favourite for the both of them. 

The rapid footfalls descending the stairs caused Nana to pause momentarily before scurrying back to the dinner, having once again lost herself to the past and her emotion. Her thoughts and feelings had been bubbling and boiling under her skin like a dormant volcano waiting to erupt for quite a while now, but she couldn’t afford to let them out. She didn’t want her daughter to see her like that. Nana was determined to be an unwavering pillar for her daughter to lean on and if she had to push her emotions down and bury them beneath a facade of smiles and laughter, then she would. For her daughter.

Tsunahime came down a few moments later and if she saw that her kaa-san put too much force into one of her knife swings so it nearly cut straight through the cutting board, she didn’t say anything.

Nana spun around, coming to meet a slightly worried looking Tsunahime and gave the child her biggest smile, discreetly inching in front of the newly halved cutting board. Her daughter had always been too observant when it came to human emotions for her own good. “Ah, Tsu-chan! You’re wearing your new sweater! It looks so cute on you, honey!” The motherly woman cooed, Tsunahime blushing as she pulled on said jumper’s white hem while glancing down at the picture of flowers on the front. The little girl had managed to disguise herself in able to purchase it and had instantly fallen in love with the image of the pink flowers against the white wool. 

The little girl smiled at her mother, relief causing her to relax after her nervousness over whether her mother approved, melted away. A large smiled replaced it and she padded up to her mother, dodging around the table and revealing a pair of three-quarter-length, navy-blue tracksuit bottoms and fluffy, brown rabbit slippers to her beaming mother. It was the only decent quality clothes she’d had and it had all come from her father in the post on random dates. It was one thing she liked about her father; he always seemed to know what to get her. However, the letters they’d been sent with had all said  _ ‘Happy Birthday’ _ , and she wasn’t quite sure why that was. Iemitsu was her father. He wouldn’t forget her birthday, right?

“Thanks kaa-san! It’s really comfy and warm!” Tsunahime bounced on the balls of her feet, her mother’s glee contagious. Nana’s smile turned wistful for a split second, which the woman was thankful for Tsunahime not noticing as she’d been glancing towards the mutilated cutting board at the time. ‘ _ Damn, she saw it.’ _ Inwardly sighing and berating herself for even trying to hide anything from her perspective daughter, Nana gazed down at the excited face of her little girl, internally cooing at the adorable picture the fluffy brunette made. “It looks good on you, honey. Very cute!” Glancing back at the boiling pot, the woman smiled as the turned the heat off, the dinner finally seeming to be ready. “Would you mind helping me set the table for dinner, honey? It should be ready soon.” Tsunahime nodded, scurrying off into the left corner of the kitchen to raid the floor-height cupboards she could reach while Nana thickened the broth before pouring the noodles into the bowls Tsunahime had placed one the counter next to her. Carrying them to the table, she set one down in front of her daughter, who immediately snapped her chopsticks and waited for her mother to sit down after collecting the fish and rice. The pair made a small thanks for their meal, before digging in. The meal was mainly silent, like most other meal times in their household, however it didn’t bother them. It was a comfortable type of silence, like the atmosphere in a bedroom when you were peacefully falling asleep. Tsunahime had shared Nana’s preference to talk after they’d eaten, anyway. It got messy, her mother had said and Tsunahime had no reason to doubt her mother.

Tsunahime hummed as she washed the dishes, pleasant coolness seeping into her feet from the plastic stool she’d been standing on for several minutes. She was still too short to reach the counter on her own, much to her mother’s amusement, who playfully teased the girl at least once every week about that fact. The bubbles tickled her skin and left her feeling fresh and clean, however, the hot water was slightly uncomfortable for her. Her hands had never been as tough as her mother’s. Glancing up as she finished placing the last clean bowl on the drying rack next to her, Tsunahime frowned as she realised she was too short to reach the cupboard where the kitchen utensils were held. She’d already finished with the chopsticks, which were clean in a draw to her left, so the bowls were the last thing to be done. And she couldn't reach the cupboard.  _ ‘Greeeeat….’ _ Puffing out her cheeks with her eyes set in a determined scowl, the little girl bent her knees before springing upwards like a frog, only just managing to touch the bottom of the cupboards with one finger before falling again. She had entertained the idea of flapping her wings to get her up that extra height she needed to reach properly, but after recalling the incident where she’d knocked everything off the table at once, she'd wisely refrained and reined in her instincts. The large clattering sound emanating from her feet hitting the plastic stool made her wince, the little girl shaking her feet one at a time to remove the stinging sensation from their soles. Sighing after realising it could dangerous to continue, she called out, hoping her mother was still cleaning the living room and hadn’t moved upstairs yet. “Kaa-san! I can’t reach the cupboard! Help please!” The sounds of padded feet on wood were like music to Tsunahime’s ear and she turned around to be greeted by the smiling face of her mother, feather duster still in her left hand. “Okay, Tsu-chan. I’ll finish up in here. Can you continue on in the living room for me please?” The little brunette girl nodded, hopping down the stool and taking her mother’s duster before hurrying into the living room. Thankfully, it seemed like her mother had nearly finished with that room and only a few more minutes of cleaning had the place looking spotless. With a small smile on her face, Tsunahime skipped back into the kitchen where her mother was just putting a few stray pots and pans back in their correct places. “Kaa-san! I’m done!” The motherly lady spun around, a beaming smile on her face.  
“Well done, Tsu-chan! That’s everything done for now. You can go and do your homework now.” Like all the air being let out of a balloon at once, the child’s mood deflated almost on cue and she whined.  
“But kaa-chaaan…. I didn’t- I  _ don’t _ understand the material. I’ll only be laughed at again!” Tsunahime’s eyes glistened with distressed, unshed tears and her mother’s expression softened. The lady unhooked her apron, laying it haphazardly across the table as she crouched in front of her daughter. Large, gentle hands found their way to Tsunahime’s shoulder blades and helped to calm the sniffling child, if only by a little bit. “I know, honey. But you can’t stop trying, okay? I’ll help you as much as I can. I promise. Just try your best and I’ll check it over when you’re done.” Tsunahime frowned, cheeks puffing out like a petulant hamster, but she quickly relented, not wanting to upset her mother. She unintentionally did that enough as it was. “Okay kaa-san. I'll try.” A proud, watery smile was her reward and Tsunahime quickly retreated towards the stairs, feeling a little better but still dreading school the next day.

As Nana watched her wonderful daughter disappear around the corner and up the stairs, she started to plan. She needed to help her baby and she would do so. She was  _ sick and tired _ of experiencing the prejudice spread by ignorant fools every day. Sick and tired of watching her girl come home with bruises the size of fists and scratches that were clearly inflicted by sharp, pin-point objects; pencils or compasses, maybe. Sick and tired of the way Tsunahime’s wings drooped and dragged along the floor constantly, as if they were holding up the sky itself and how the little brunette’s face would twist into a mockery of a smile, so fake and wrong it made Nana’s heart  _ bleed _ . Nana’s eyes flashed as she mentally schemed, working out all of the tiny loopholes and hidden advantages she could unveil for her daughter while absentmindedly putting the clean dinner utensils away. If the world was not going to anything to help her baby, then she would  _ force _ it to. Consequences be damned. 

As Tsunahime ascended the staircase, head down and eyes trained on the steps so she wouldn’t trip and hurt herself, she thought back to that horrifying encounter with the rock. She just couldn’t get the huge dent in the metal garbage can out of her mind, now that she was no longer distracted by her mother. Then, imagining that dent in her own head… Tsunahime shivered in disgust and fear, thanking the powers above that she managed to avoid that rock. “Well, now I know to be more careful when walking through that route. Maybe I should take Route 3 tomorrow, just in case…” Tsunahime mused to herself, mentally plotting her route through the town. She had several different ways of getting too and from school, which helped to avoid any bullies who anticipated her way home and loitered on the streets to ‘greet her’ as she walked past. She’d learnt the first few times when walking the same route twice and had developed her own routes to combat this. Her mother had helped to nurture this by turning her one empty bedroom wall into a massive map of Namimori, which had slowly been filled with different coloured thumb tacks and string. The rest of her room was filled to the ceiling with bookcases filled with various stationary, books and other knick knacks. You could say that hoarding all her items, even from when she was a baby, was a way of Tsunahime reminding herself every morning that life wasn’t all bad.  _ “It gives me the energy to get up in the morning, I guess. It’s the only way I can describe it.” _ Tsunahime had once told her mother. She’d gotten a funny look back; almost like a cross between utter despair and unbridled fury. Tsunahime hadn’t commented on the reasons for her room looking like it did again, and her mother hadn’t brought it up either.

Glancing at her map as she walked in her door, Tsunahime confirmed her route before trudging to her desk. Carelessly wiping off all of the papers from the day before, which landed conveniently in the wire mesh garbage can on the floor, Tsunahime bonelessly collapsed into her desk chair, heaving her weighty school bag onto her lap. Once she’d pulled out her needed items, such as her stationary set (which broke more often than she tripped, which was an achievement in itself) and her homework book (littered with snarky teacher comments and hundreds of offending red ‘x’s), the little brunette got to work in puzzling through her work. “Uh, so I need to write an emotional Haiku about pain and/or suffering, using the new kanji we ‘learned’... Okay, so this isn’t as bad as it usually is. Thank Goodness!” Tsunahime smiled slightly before cracking down, her wild imagination already whirring into gear and spewing out ideas. As Tsunahime worked, she decided that maybe she’d found something she was good at. She’d check with her kaa-san later.  _ ‘Maybe, if the teachers won’t help me, I’ll stick to the things I’m good at. Like languages! I’ll help myself instead!’ _

And with that thought, everything changed.

Again.  
  


* * *

_  
Two Weeks Later… _

“Kaa-san! Could you possibly buy me a book with the basics to the English Language when you go shopping today? I wanna learn it!”

“O-Okay, sure honey! May I ask why, though? Don’t you have enough on your plate with your normal school work?”

“Nah, I’ll be fine! Plus, I’m actually pretty good at languages! I already know what some words mean and I only started it last Monday!”

“Well done Tsu-chan! I’ll make sure to get that for you. I’m so proud of you!”

“Thanks, kaa-san!”  
  


* * *

  
Tsunahime absent-mindedly trudged along her new route from school, her nose stuck in her new language book that her mother had managed to order for her from online. Nana had just discovered the wonders of online shopping and had been purchasing all of their needed items by using the small, run-down but still working computer they had tucked away in the corner of the living room. No-one online knew if they were an Alato family or not, leading to a fairer and easier time shopping for items. Tsunahime and her mother both knew that this would help them immensely.

Tsunahime glanced up from her book, keeping the pace the same while flicking her eyes towards a shiny piece of metal to her left. Using it as a mirror, she spied the three upperclassmen following her from the same distance as they hand been for the last few minutes, and frowned. She’d noticed that she’d been followed a few streets back and had tried her best to lose the group. She’d gone through every ludicrous way she could think of to get to her house, even walking through a construction site, but they had not budged. She was growing increasingly more worried as time went on, and decided that it was then or never if she wanted to get away unscathed. Snapping her book shut, Tsunahime took one more quick glance behind her before taking off suddenly down an alleyway to her left, the thumping of footsteps and angered shouts following her. Spotting the large, brick wall in front of her, Tsunahime thanked her lucky star that she was correct in deducing her location and prepared to jump, knowing that if she managed to propel herself over that, then there was no way the three boys behind her could follow.

Unfortunately, she hadn’t taken into account the increased speed at which three, burly-looking upperclassmen could run compared to herself. 

***** Feeling a rough, undeniably strong hand grip her left wing-tip, Tsunahime froze in surprise and icy terror, the action causing her to accidentally abort her jump. The pain came next; the sensation of her sensitive feathers being crushed in one of the brute’s meaty fingers caused her to scream out reflexively, hoping anyone would hear and possibly come to help and not turn away as soon as they saw what she was. Another hand covering her mouth, muffling her shrieks quickly caused that hope to die a horrible death. Tsunahime flailed and kicked, trying everything in her power to get herself free as she was painfully dragged backwards, but she quickly figured out that it was useless. The older boys were too strong for her young, weak five year old body to handle. However, she was determined to continue, until a harsh punch to the stomach caused her to double over, gasping as the air was pushed from her lungs and swallowing the bile threatening to rise up her throat. The boys around her laughed, jeering and cheering her attacker on as he roughly shoved her into a wall, her wings hitting it with a sickening crack. White hot agony lanced through her right wing, the intensity of it causing her vision to flash white for a brief moment. When she came to once again, she found her face being roughly pressed into the ground, gravel, grit and blood filling her mouth. Tsunahime weakly whimpered, moving her arm in an effort to push herself up and relieve the pressure on her face, but it seemed like another one of the boys noticed, for without warning a black heel stomped down hard and mercilessly on her wrist, causing her to scream again. Another round of mocking laughter sounded and a sudden, painful pressure on her already throbbing right wing caused the little brunette to gasp mutedly, the pain so intense she couldn’t even scream. However, at this point, there was no more mocking laughter or jeering from the boys above her. Instead, there were only panicked whispers and the pressure on her wing and face lessened. Moaning in pain, Tsunahime attempted to push herself up, only for a heavy weight to land quite suddenly on her broken wing and rip a garbled, agonised wail of absolute pain from her throat.  *****

For the few seconds that followed as the little brunette attempted to regain her senses, all she could hear was the terrified screams of her three attackers, the cracking of bone and finally, three heavy thuds of bodies hitting the floor. Deeming it somewhat safe despite the new unknown entity, that was strong enough to take down her attackers, still lurking nearby (her buzzing told her so) Tsunahime tried once again to push herself up, her one good arm straining as pain wracked her body. Footsteps grew closer, the little brunette doubled her efforts to get up and  _ get away before the  _ _ dangerdanger _ _ got closer! _ Groaning, she was just about to get a knee beneath her torso to help pushy her up when a gentle hand landed on her back, causing her to freeze and tremble with the expectation of another beating. However, a rough but undeniably childlike, male voice greeted her instead, the pressure on her back slowly growing heavier in what she soon recognised as an effort to keep her on the ground. “Stay down, herbivore. It’ll hurt more if you try to move.” With that, Tsunahime gave up and collapsed heavily on her stomach, groaning in pain and trying her best not to move. She decided she’d trust the strange boy above her, for his hands were warm with a sensation that was intimately familiar but still unknown to the child, and she could not fathom hands that kind and gentle committing any sort of misdeed towards her. So, she was content to lay still with that lovely warmth spreading through her back and wait for whatever the boy was waiting for.

The answer came a few minutes later with the sound of a large van or truck rumbling up to the alley, the screaming of ambulance sirens causing Tsunahime to wince and wish she could cover her ears. She could hear the strange  _ safe-boy _ arguing with an older man, who she could hear refusing to treat her rather vehemently. The pain and unbelievable unfairness of her situation caused tears to spring to her eyes, sobs almost choking her when she heard the man go to retreat back into the ambulance. A sudden, harsh smack of metal against flesh halted the receding footsteps the replaced the noise with a shrill shriek that Tsunahime absent-mindedly wondered about how that could come from a male adult’s mouth.

Soon, a foggy feeling was overcoming her brain, making it harder for the little brunette to think properly. Her eyes were drooping closed, blackness swarming the edges of her vision and at this point, she guessed that the  _ safe-boy _ from before had noticed, for the warmth spread once again through her arm as he touched it. She felt nothing, despite the knowledge that she  _ should _ be screaming in agony from being turned over as quickly as she was, leaving her wings to be pressed painfully into the concrete. Two hands grabbed her shoulders, her eyes flicking up to study a child’s pale face with narrowed, grey eyes and a thick head of pitch black hair. His mouth was moving harshly and a slightly fluttering of panic danced across his features that the brunette wanted to wipe away. From her position with her vision fading fast, Tsunahime just about managed to get a glimpse of a red armband and sleek, black feathers before her eyes rolled back in her head and her world descended into fire and darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a slight feeling I went overboard in that last section but *shrugs* oh well. I hope you enjoyed it anyway and don’t hesitate to drop me a comment with any helpful criticism and questions! Chao!


End file.
